System and method linking building information modeling and enterprise resource planning

ABSTRACT

An electronic construction collaboration system for managing a construction project is provided. The electronic construction collaboration system includes an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) sub-system including a contract engine configured to generate at least one project contract including a contract data set and ERP metadata corresponding to Building Information Modeling (BIM) metadata included in a structural object of a construction project model in a BIM sub-system and an interconnection engine configured to associatively link the ERP metadata and the BIM metadata and send the contract data set to the BIM sub-system in response to associatively linking the ERP metadata and the BIM metadata.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent pplication Ser.No. 13/919,956 entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD LINKING BUILDING INFORMATIONMODELING AND ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING”, filed on Jun. 17, 2013. U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/919,956 claims priority to U.S. PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/661,170 entitled “LINKING BUILDING INFORMATIONMODELING AND ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING”, filed on Jun. 18, 2012. Theentire contents of the above-referenced applications are herebyincorporated by reference for all purposes.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to the technical field of dataprocessing, and more particularly, to linking Building InformationModeling (“BIM”) and Enterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”).

BACKGROUND

The background description provided herein is for the purpose ofgenerally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of thepresently named inventors, to the extent it is described in thisbackground section, as well as aspects of the description that may nototherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neitherexpressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the presentdisclosure.

A construction project may involve collaboration between architects,engineers and contractors, all of whom may be directly or indirectly inthe employ of an owner or other managing party. The architects andengineers may design buildings or other structures (e.g., by creatingplans and/or models) that will serve their intended function, bestructurally and mechanically sound, be safe, comply with various rulesand regulations (also referred to as “code”), and meet the needs of theproject owner. Contractors may construct the building or other structurebased on models and/or designs provided by the architects and/orengineers. Contractors may include one or more general contractors,subcontractors, suppliers or other vendors, service providers, and soforth. In some cases, a “construction company” may include a generalcontractor and one or more subcontractors or suppliers in privity withthe general contractor.

A construction project may be bifurcated between architects andengineers on the one hand, and the contractors on the other. Architectsand engineers may be more specialized than contractors, and may tend tofocus primarily on their designs and engineering specifications. On theother hand, the construction of the project may be perceived asfungible. Assuming an equivalent basis of training and experience,multiple construction companies may be capable of executing a projectdesign nearly identically. While a project design may vary based on anindividual architect's interpretation of owner needs, the constructionof the project design may be similar from one contractor to the next.What distinguishes one group of contractors from another is how the workwill be done. This may be defined in project contract documents. Projectcontract documents may precisely describe how the contractor willdeliver the constructed designs to the owner. They may be highlyspecific to an individual general contractor and his/her negotiationswith an owner. Project contract documents may describe, among otherthings, timelines, deliverables, budgets, and payment rates for thedeliverables. Given the separate domains in which they function,architects and engineers on the one hand, and contractors on the other,have developed different systems and methods to manage their domains.

Many architects and engineers utilize computers with sophisticateddrafting programs. Drafting programs rapidly evolving from representingtwo-dimensional (“2D”) figures like squares, ovals, and trapezoids torepresenting of three-dimensional (“3D”) volumes like columns, slabs,and tubes. Such 2D or 3D drafting programs may be referred to as“Building Information Modeling,” or “BIM.” BIM programs may providearchitects and engineers with a library of volumes and/or objects fromwhich they may develop a particular design for the project.

Many contractors also employ sophisticated systems, referred to asEnterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”) systems, to manage projectcommunications, contract documents, and job costs to increase theproductivity and accountability of their businesses. ERP sub-systems mayprovide various parties such as business owners, managers, and partnersaccess to job cost data, contract documents and financial data.

During the management of a mid-sized construction project, the averagegeneral contractor might interact with hundreds or even thousands ofsubcontractors and other venders, via tens of thousands of project andcontract documents. The manual search to identify all of the pertinentdocuments, contracts, and data associated with a particular element of aproject drawing or model may be time-consuming and/or inefficient.

In spite of the sophistication of the separate BIM and ERP sub-systems,a gap remains between the project model of the architect or engineer andthe project contract of the contractor. In prior systems, there is not alink or association between project models and contractdocuments/financial performance data, or vice versa. Instead, aninterested party may waste time manually looking up contracts pertinentto a particular portion of the project models, or by paging through thedrawings for which a particular vendor has subcontracted. For example, aproject manager (e.g., of a general contractor) may wish to learn moreabout the specifics of the contracts associated with a particularstructure as described in the construction project models. To betterunderstand the performance requirements associated with this particularstructure, the project manager may first identify the structure usingthe BIM sub-system. The project manager must then switch from the BIMsub-system to the ERP sub-system (or to project contract notebooks inscenarios where there is no ERP sub-system) so that the project managercan look up the contracts associated with the particular structure. Itis through this investigative process that the project manager can findrelevant project documents (requests for information, submittals, etc.)and contracts (initial contract, pending and approved change orders,etc.) associated with the structure of interest.

SUMMARY

An electronic construction collaboration system for managing aconstruction project is provided. The electronic constructioncollaboration system includes an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)sub-system including a contract engine configured to generate at leastone project contract including a contract data set and ERP metadatacorresponding to Building Information Modeling (BIM) metadata includedin a structural object of a construction project model in a BIMsub-system and an interconnection engine configured to associativelylink the ERP metadata and the BIM metadata and send the contract dataset to the BIM sub-system in response to associatively linking the ERPmetadata and the BIM metadata.

Associatively linking metadata in the BIM and ERP sub-systems andutilizing this correlation to share data between the systems increasesworkflow efficiency by decreasing the time needed to search forinformation separate sub-systems, such as contract data sets. As aresult, a user's productivity is increased thereby increasing the amountof work that can be accomplished in a given amount of time andincreasing their earning potential. It will be appreciated that thesystem may be utilized by a wide range of professionals in theconstruction field such as contractors, engineers, architects, etc.,thereby enabling contractors and engineers and/or architects toseamlessly share information, if desired.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. To facilitatethis description, like reference numerals designate like structuralelements. Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by wayof limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an example construction project;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic depiction of an electronic constructioncollaboration system;

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates example computing devices that may beused as interfaces to Building Information Modeling (“BIM”) andEnterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”) sub-systems in the system shown inFIG. 2;

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates example BIM and ERP objects, metadataassociated with those objects, and links between the metadata of objectsacross the BIM and ERP sub-systems;

FIG. 5 schematically depicts an example of contractual and/or or otherERP related information a user might see when they select an object in aBIM sub-system;

FIG. 6 schematically depicts an example method that may be implementedon a computing device associate with a BIM or ERP sub-system;

FIGS. 7 and 8 depict a method for managing a construction project;

FIG. 9 depicts another method for managing a construction project; and

FIG. 10 schematically depicts an example computing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An electronic construction collaboration system for managing digitaldata related to one or more constructions projects is described herein.The system bridges a communication gap between a Building InformationModeling (BIM) sub-system and an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)sub-system. Specifically, metadata included the BIM sub-system is mappedto metadata included in the ERP sub-system and data related to thelinked metadata may be exchanged between the two sub-systems based onthe metadata mapping. The exchanged data may include structural objectdata, such as dimensional data defining the features and location of theobject, and contract data, such as contract documents, cost data, laborhour data, and equipment hour data. As a result, users of the system,such as architects, engineers, and/or contractors, may quickly beprovided with pertinent project data without undue searching orinteractive switching between the sub-systems. Consequently, theproductivity of the users may be increased.

Referring now to FIG. 1, an example project 100 may include variousentities working together. Architects and engineers, as noted in thebackground, may create project models and building plans, and adjustthose plans to comply with various codes and regulations. In variousembodiments, architects and engineers may include civic personnel (e.g.,from the government and/or community organizations).

Contractors may be engaged to execute the plans and models provided bythe architects and engineers. As noted above, contractors may includesubcontractors, vendors, suppliers and any other entities that are incontractual relationship with another contractor entity to execute aportion of a project or to supply a good or service related to theproject.

Referring to FIG. 2, an electronic construction collaboration system 200is depicted. The electronic construction collaboration system 200 may beused by a variety of professionals such as architects, engineers,contractors, etc. The system may enable the aforementioned professionalsto efficiently manage one or more constructions projects, such asprojects for constructing buildings, roads, bridges, canals, dams, etc.

The electronic construction collaboration system 200 includes a BIMsub-system 202. The BIM sub-system 202 is configured to providedimensional rendering (e.g., 2-D rendering, 3-D rendering) of aconstruction model for the professionals discussed above such asarchitects and engineers. Additionally, contractors may also utilize theBIM sub-system 202 due to the communications bridge established betweenthe sub-systems in the electronic construction collaboration system 200,discussed in greater detail herein.

The BIM sub-system 202 may include a plurality of engines forimplementing various functionalities. Additionally, the BIM sub-system202 may include one or more computing devices having code stored inmemory executable by a processor to implement the aforementionedfunctionality. Therefore, the BIM sub-system may include and execute oneor more application programs via one or more hardware components.

The engines may include a model engine 204 configured to generate aconstruction project model 206. The model engine 204 may be executed byprograms such as Autodesk, CypeCAD, Vico Office Suite, etc. Theconstruction project model 206 may include at least one structuralobject 208. However, it will be appreciated that in some examples, theconstruction project model 206 may include a plurality of structuralobjects. In such an example, the structural objects may beparametrically defined with regard to other structural objects in theconstruction project model. That is to say that the structural objectsmay be defined as parameters and relations to other objects, so that ifa related object is amended, dependent ones may also change. Theconstruction project model 206 may be any suitable model such as abuilding, bridge, road, canal, dam, etc.

The structural object 208 may include form data 210 defining thecontours, size, and other geometric features of the object. Thestructural object 208 may further include location data 212 defining thelocation of the object. The structural object 208 may also include BIMmetadata 214. The BIM metadata 214 may include one or more of materialdata, vendor data, project number data, project phase data, asubcontract number, project schedule data, and cost data. Theaforementioned types of data may each correspond to a different datafield. Additionally, the model engine 204 may also be configured toenable the user to manipulate the structural objects, augment thestructural objects, delete one or more of the structural objects, etc.

The BIM sub-system 202 further includes a BIM interconnection engine 216configured communicatively link the BIM sub-system 202 to an ERPsub-system 218. Specifically, digital metadata independent of graphicalrendering of the BIM sub-system may be linked with digital metadata inthe ERP sub-system via the interconnection engine. In this way,electronic communication between the two sub-systems is established. TheBIM interconnection engine 216 is depicted as a separate component fromthe model engine 204. However in some examples, the interconnectionengine 216 may be integrated into the model engine 204.

The ERP sub-system 218 is included in the electronic constructioncollaboration system 200. The ERP sub-system 218 also includes aplurality of engines configured to implement various computingfunctionalities. The ERP sub-system 218 may include one or morecomputing devices having code stored in memory executable by a processorto implement the aforementioned functionality. Therefore, the ERPsub-system may include and execute one or more application programs viaone or more hardware components. Specifically, the ERP sub-system 218includes a contract engine 220 configured to generate and/or manage(e.g., augment, delete, and/or overwrite data in the contract) a projectcontract 222. It will be appreciated that the ERP sub-system 218 mayinclude a plurality of project contracts related to different aspects ofthe construction project. Furthermore, the project contract 222 may bedelineated into contract elements associated with different aspects ofthe construction project.

The project contract 222 further includes a contract data set 224. Thecontract data set 224 includes contract documents, cost data, labor hourdata, and/or equipment hour data. The contract data set 224 thereforemay include one or more files, data structures, etc. The projectcontract 222 further includes ERP metadata 228. The ERP metadata 228 maybe associated with the contract data set 224. The ERP metadata 228 mayinclude one or more of material data, vendor data, project number data,project phase data, a subcontract number, project schedule data, andcost data. The aforementioned types of data may each correspond to adifferent data field.

The ERP sub-system 218 further includes an ERP interconnection engine226 configured to communicatively link the ERP sub-system 218 to the BIMsub-system 202. It will be appreciated that both the ERP interconnectionengine 226 and the BIM interconnection engine 216 may work incombination to provide this functionality, in some examples.

The ERP interconnection engine 226 and the BIM interconnection engine216 may both be configured to associatively link the BIM metadata 214and the ERP metadata 228.

Specifically, corresponding metadata fields in the BIM metadata and theERP metadata may be associatively linked (e.g., mapped) to one anotherindicated at arrow 230. The metadata may be mapped via a manualselection process, in one example. For instance, a user of the systemmay manually select linked metadata fields. Additionally oralternatively, the metadata in the BIM sub-system and the ERP sub-systemmay be configured to comply with a similar standard and a one to onecorrelation, a one to two correlation, etc., may be drawn betweenmetadata fields in the sub-systems. Still further in one example, aparser or an arranging process may be used to automatically linkmetadata fields in the sub-systems. For instance, design software may beused to look up a project identification number in the BIM sub-systemand map metadata associated with the project ID to metadata associatedwith an identical project ID in the ERP sub-system. Thus, in one examplethe ERP metadata 228 may include a first data field corresponding to asecond data field in the BIM metadata 214. In such an example, the firstdata field in the ERP metadata is associatively linked with a pluralityof data fields in the BIM metadata. Thus, the ERP metadata and the BIMmetadata may not have a one to one correspondence. Further in oneexample, the interconnection engines (216 and 226) may be configured toestablish a plurality of links between ERP metadata and BIM metadata,each of the links may be associated with a particular buildingstructural object. The links may be established based on a correspondingfield, and once established, the links may include non-correspondingfields.

It will be appreciated that the mapping may be automatically implementedby the electronic construction collaboration system 200, in one example.However, in other examples, certain actions in the system may triggerthe associative linking. For instance, receiving a structural objectselection input 232 from an input device 234 may trigger the associativelinking. The input device 234 may be any suitable input device such as atrackpad, a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen, etc. The input device 234may be included in the BIM sub-system 202, in some examples.Additionally or alternatively, actions performed in the ERP sub-system218 may also trigger the associative linking of the BIM metadata 214 andthe ERP metadata 228. Specifically, receiving a project contractselection input 236 from an input device 238 may trigger the associativelinking. The input device 238 may be any suitable input device such as atrackpad, a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen, etc. The input device 238may be included in the ERP sub-system 218, in some examples.

The associative linking of the BIM metadata 214 may trigger (e.g.,automatically trigger) data transfer between the BIM sub-system 202 andthe ERP sub-system 218 or vice-versa Specifically, in one example theBIM sub-system 202 may receive a duplicate of the contract data set 224sent from the ERP sub-system 218 in response to the associative linkingof the metadata indicated at arrow 240. In another example, the BIMsub-system 202 may receive a selected portion of the elements includedin the contract data set 224 sent from the ERP sub-system 218. Theportion of elements sent to the BIM sub-system 202 by the ERP sub-system218 may be determined based on the type of metadata that iscommunicatively linked. In another example, the ERP sub-system 218 mayreceive a duplicate of the location data 212 and/or the form data 210sent from the BIM sub-system 202 in response to associatively linkingthe metadata, indicated at arrows 242. In this way, metadataassociatively linked by the two sub-systems may trigger the sharing ofrelevant data between the two sub-systems. As a result, a user'sproductivity may be increased via a decrease in wasted time spentsearching for pertinent information stored within different sub-systems.

The BIM interconnection engine 216 and/or the ERP interconnection engine226 may be configured to format the contract data into ConstructionOperations Building Information Exchange (COBie) format prior to sendingthe contract data. COBie is a data format which may be useful foroperations and maintenance information. Therefore, the COBie format mayhelp provide a continuity of information and provide more effectivemetadata mapping. In one example, the COBie format includes a type ofextensible markup language (XML) format.

The BIM sub-system 202 may be in electronic communication with a display250 enabling a user to view graphical data generated in the sub-system.Therefore, the structural object 208 as well as the contract data set224 may be presented on a graphical user interface (GUI) in the display.Likewise, the BIM sub-system 202 may be in electronic communication witha display 250, indicated via arrow 252. It will be appreciated that insome examples, the display 250 may be integrated into the BIM sub-system202. Likewise, the ERP sub-system 218 may be in electronic communicationwith a display 260 enabling a user to view graphical data generated inthe sub-system. Therefore, the contract data set 224 as well as thestructural object 208 may be presented on the display 260. Additionally,the display 260 may be integrated into the BIM sub-system 202, in someexamples. Further, in some examples, the BIM sub-system 202 may beremotely located from the ERP sub-system 218. Furthermore, it will beappreciated that each separate sub-system may include one or morehardware components, devices, etc., which may be colocated or remotelylocated. Moreover, the ERP sub-system 218 and the BIM sub-system 202 maybe in electronic communication via a network 270 (e.g., the Internet, aLAN network, etc.)

FIG. 3 shows an example use case scenario of the electronic constructioncollaboration system 200 shown in FIG. 2. Therefore, the devices,components, elements, etc., shown in FIG. 3 may be included in thesystem shown in FIG. 2. An architect or engineer may utilize a BIMcomputing device 300 configured with or having access to BIM sub-system302 to create and/or modify project plans and models. As previouslydiscussed the BIM sub-system may include software. In variousembodiments, BIM sub-system 302 may be used to create a two-dimensional(“2D”) or three-dimensional (“3D”) drawing or model of a structure orbuilding to be constructed as part of a project. 2D and 3D BIM drawingsand/or models may include a plurality of objects. Each object maycorrespond to a particular structure within the overall model. BIM usersmay manipulate these objects in various ways. For instance, in someembodiments, a user may use a mouse, keyboard, light pin and/or otherinput devices to interact with a graphical user interface (“GUI”)depicted on one or more displays of BIM computing device 300.

A contractor (e.g., general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers,vendors, etc.,) may use an ERP computing device 304 configured with orhaving access to ERP sub-system 306 to perform its role in a project. Aspreviously discussed, the ERP sub-system may include software. Forinstance, a general contractor may utilize ERP computing device 304 toview and/or edit contract data and/or other more general project data,such as costs, completion status, safety incidences, change orders, andso forth.

While BIM computing device 300 is shown as a desktop computing deviceand ERP computing device 304 is shown as a laptop computing device, thisis not meant to be limiting. Either of these computing devices, or anyother computing device or system described herein, may be any type ofcomputing device, including but not limited to a desktop computer, alaptop computer, a mobile phone, a tablet computing device, a personaldigital assistance (“PDA”), a “dummy” terminal, a server, etc.

BIM sub-system 302 and ERP sub-system 306 are shown as blocks in FIG. 3to indicate that they may be implemented in various forms. In someembodiments, local computing devices such as BIM computing device 300and ERP computing device 304 may execute client programs that may beconfigured to connect to corresponding server programs executing onBIM/ERP server computers. In some such embodiments, BIM/ERP clientsinstalled on computing devices such as BIM computing device 300 or ERPcomputing device 304 may store and retrieve data from a remote database(not shown), e.g., controlled by an BIM and/or ERP server.

BIM and ERP sub-systems may enable users to create, modify, and/ordelete various objects. In various embodiments, these objects may beaccompanied by metadata, which may describe various aspects of theobjects. Examples of metadata are shown in FIG. 4. On the left, metadatafor an example BIM sub-system 402 object, in this case a “structuralsteel column at grid location B5,” may include but is not limited to:date start, date complete, project number, phase code, subcontractnumber, and vendor number. Similarly, on the right, metadata for anexample ERP sub-system 404 record, in this case “structural steelrecords,” may include but is not limited to: project number, projectdocuments, vendor number, contract documents, estimated cost, actualcost, date start, and date complete. This metadata is provided as anexample, and is not meant to be limiting in any way. Various othermetadata (not shown) may additionally or alternatively be related to acomponent such as a structural steel column or structural steel records.

In various embodiments, objects that may correspond or relate to eachother in real life may be classified and/or characterized differently ina BIM sub-system 402 versus an ERP sub-system 404, shown in FIG. 4. Forinstance, in FIG. 4, the arrows indicate that a number of metadatafields associated with each object may correspond or otherwise relate toeach other. These relationships may be usable to link the BIM sub-system402 and ERP sub-system 404, so that a user may interact with onesub-system to view data from both sub-systems. For example, a user ofBIM sub-system 402 may be able to select the structural steel column atgrid location B5 and request, from ERP sub-system 404, contractualdocuments or other data that is pertinent to the selected structuralcolumn or all structural columns in a project.

A number of metadata fields may be linked across BIM and ERPsub-systems. For example, both the “structural steel column at gridlocation B5” object of BIM sub-system 402 and the “structural steelrecords” of ERP sub-system 404 have “project number” fields. If thevalues of these objects' project number fields are the same, that maysuggest that, at the very least, the BIM object and the ERP recordsrelate to the same project. Additionally, both the BIM object and theERP records in FIG. 3 have “vendor number” fields. If the vendor numberfor both objects and records is the same, that may further suggest thata single vendor was responsible for or at least involved with both theobject and the associated records. In various embodiments, a user of BIMsub-system 402 could utilize a combination of the project number andvendor number fields to identify and view ERP records and data aboutpertinent BIM objects (e.g., contracts and other data related to thesame project and vendor).

Associated fields may further include a project identification numberfield, a vendor field, a construction phase/trade field, a projectreadiness field, a phase field, a delivery date field, a customer field,and/or an asset owner field. The project readiness field may includedata that signifies if the project is complete or is pending.Furthermore, when a structural object is selected contract informationas well as change order information may be displayed to a user of theBIM sub-system and/or the ERP sub-system. Change order data may beintegrated into the system via the mapped metadata.

Additionally, time cards may be linked to a phase of construction in theERP sub-system and therefore linked with associated metadata. In thisway, time cards may be pulled (e.g., displayed to a user of the system)enabling payment and cost review by the user.

It should be understood that relationships between objects in BIM andrecords in ERP sub-systems, such as between the “structural steel columnat grid location B5” of BIM sub-system 402 and the “structural steelrecords” of ERP sub-system 404, need not be one-to-one. A component inBIM sub-system 402 may correspond to more than one component in ERPsub-system 404, and vice versa. For example, an object in BIM sub-system402 such as a structural steel column may correspond to multiple records(e.g., vendor, contract, etc.) in ERP sub-system 404 by virtue of sharedmetadata fields. As another example, a single contract in ERP sub-system404 may relate to multiple individual objects in BIM sub-system 402,e.g., where a particular subcontractor is hired to build multiplestructures.

Benefits of linking BIM sub-system 402 and ERP sub-system 404 viametadata may become clearer through an example. Assume a project manageris viewing an engineering drawing of a particular structural steelcolumn in BIM sub-system 402, e.g., using BIM computing device 300 inFIG. 3. Assume also that the project manager wishes to view ongoingcosts and contractual documents associated with the structural steelcolumn. Rather than switching to ERP sub-system 404 (e.g., by moving toERP computing device 304 in FIG. 3) and manually searching for contractsand other pertinent data related to the structural steel column, theproject manager may simply direct BIM sub-system 402 to cross referencethe metadata associated with the structural steel column in BIMsub-system 402 with corresponding metadata in the ERP sub-system 404. Inthis manner, the project manager may search for and retrieve projectdocuments, contracts, and other data pertinent to the structural steelcolumn from ERP sub-system 404, without transitioning between the twosub-systems.

Associations between metadata in BIM and ERP sub-systems are not limitedto associations between objects in the architectural or engineeringmodels like structural steel columns (BIM) and project documents orcontracts (ERP). In various embodiments, associations may additionallyor alternatively include an association between objects in a BIMsub-system and other data related and unrelated to an ERP sub-system,including but not limited to cost data, labor hours, equipment hours,change orders, and so forth.

In various embodiments, BIM sub-system 402, ERP sub-system 404, or bothmay be configured to cross reference with each other on user-selectedmetadata fields. For example, the project manager from the example abovemay refine the search results by specifying particular metadata to belinked from BIM sub-system 402 to ERP sub-system 404. For instance, theproject manager could request only ERP components with the same projectnumber and/or subcontractor number as the current BIM object, or eventhe same start and finish dates. In some cases, the more fields selectedfor cross reference, the narrower the results may be.

While the BIM and ERP sub-systems described herein remain separate(though linked via metadata), this is not meant to be limiting. Invarious embodiments, rather than separate BIM and ERP sub-systems simplybeing linked together using metadata, a single sub-system or applicationprogram may incorporate both BIM and ERP capabilities.

FIG. 5 depicts schematically one example of what a user of BIM computingdevice 300, shown in FIG. 3, might see on a display when the userselects a particular drawing or model feature (e.g., a bathroomfixture). In this example, a user may be viewing a building plan 502 andmay have selected a particular feature, in this case, a dual sink 504.Selection of a feature in the drawing or model may cause anotherinterface or window 506 to open. The other interface or window 506 maydepict various BIM-related information about the selected feature, suchas the entity installing it, materials involved, etc. Moreover, theother interface or window 506 may also display non-BIM relatedinformation (including but not limited to ERP-related information) aboutthe selected feature, such as contracts related to the feature, amountsreceived and paid for the particular feature, cash flow relating to thefeature, the entity (e.g., subcontractor) responsible for constructingthe feature, information relating to that entity, any change orderrequests or approvals pertinent to that particular feature, informationabout materials used for the feature, and so forth.

FIG. 6 depicts an example method 600 that may be implemented by acomputing device such as BIM computing device 300 and/or ERP computingdevice 304 in FIG. 3. Although the operations are depicted in aparticular order, this is not meant to be limiting. One or moreoperations may be reordered, added and/or omitted without departing fromthe present disclosure.

At 602, input may be received, e.g., by BIM computing device 300 and/orERP computing device 304, that indicates that a user has selected (e.g.,has interest in) a particular object. For example, if the user is usinga BIM sub-system (e.g., via BIM computing device 300), the user mayselect (e.g., using a mouse, light pin, etc.) a graphical or textualobject corresponding to a component of a building or other structure,such as the dual sink described above. Likewise, if the user is usingthe ERP sub-system (e.g., via ERP computing device 304), the user mayselect a contract or other piece of data, e.g., using a mouse, keyboard,light pin, etc. In various embodiments, once selected, that object maybecome “active,” and the user may perform various actions on the object(e.g., depending on the user's access credentials), such asmodification, deletion, and so forth.

At 604, either upon selection of the object at 602 or responsive to anadditional command from the user, metadata related to the selectedobject may be retrieved. For instance, if a user selects a “structuralcolumn” at BIM computing device 300, metadata relating to that object(e.g., shown in FIG. 3) may be retrieved, e.g., from a databaseassociated with a BIM sub-system. In various embodiments, the retrievedmetadata may be displayed or made available for display to the user.

At 606, input may be received from the user indicating a selection ofparticular metadata fields, e.g., for cross reference into a remotesystem. (As used herein, a “remote system” may refer to the ERPsub-system from the perspective of the BIM sub-system, and to the BIMsub-system from the perspective of the ERP sub-system.) The user mayselect metadata fields for a variety of reasons. For example, the usermay wish to know what other portions of a project are being handled bythe same subcontractor as the currently-selected BIM object.Accordingly, the user may select the “subcontractor number” metadatafield, for cross reference into the ERP sub-system.

At 608, metadata corresponding to the metadata retrieved at 604 and/orthe metadata fields selected at 606 may be located in the remote system.If the user is using BIM computing device 300, the correspondingmetadata may be retrieved from ERP computing device 304 and/or an ERPsub-system 306. If the user is using ERP computing device 304, thecorresponding metadata may be retrieved from BIM computing device 300and/or BIM sub-system 302.

At 610, data to which the metadata located at 608 is associated may beretrieved. For instance, BIM computing device 300 may retrieve contractsand other data associated with metadata received from ERP sub-system 306and/or ERP computing device 304. Alternatively, ERP computing device 304may retrieve BIM objects associated with metadata received from BIMsub-system 302 and/or BIM computing device 300. Continuing the exampledescribed above, BIM computing device 300 may receive, e.g., from ERPsub-system 306, contracts and other data with metadata that matches themetadata selected at 606 and/or that relates to metadata retrieved at604. If at 606 the user of BIM computing device 300 selected particularmetadata fields of interest, such as a subcontractor number, then thecontracts or other data returned from (e.g., ERP sub-system 306), mayinclude any contracts or other data having the same subcontractornumber.

FIG. 7 shows a method 700 for managing a construction project in an inan electronic construction collaboration system. The method shows aninput device 702, BIM sub-system 704, and ERP sub-system 706 executingthe method. It will be appreciated that the input device 702 may besimilar to the input device 234 shown in FIG. 2. Likewise, the BIMsub-system 704 may be similar to the BIM sub-system 202 shown in FIG. 2and the ERP sub-system 706 may be similar to the ERP sub-system 218shown in FIG. 2. Thus, the method may be implemented via the electronicconstruction collaboration system, sub-systems, components, elements,etc., shown in FIG. 2 or may be implemented via another suitableelectronic construction collaboration system.

At 710 the method includes, at the input device 702, generating astructural object selection input. For instance, an object may beselected via a mouse click over an object in a graphical user interface.Next at 712 the method includes sending the structural object selectioninput from the input device 702 to the BIM sub-system 704. At 714 themethod includes receiving the structural object selection input at theBIM sub-system 704 sent from the input device 702.

Next at 716 the method includes selecting a structural object inresponse to receiving the structural object input, the structural objectincluded in a construction project model in the BIM sub-system 704. BIMmetadata included in the BIM sub-system included in the structuralobject. The BIM metadata may include material data, vendor data, projectnumber data, project phase data, a subcontract number, project scheduledata, and cost data. Additionally, the structural object may includeform data and location data. As previously discussed, the metadata maybe included in a metadata set having a plurality of data fields.

At 718 the method includes sending a contract data information requestto the ERP sub-system from the BIM sub-system. The contract datainformation request may include BIM metadata. Next at 720 the methodincludes receiving the contract data information request from the BIMsub-system at the ERP sub-system. It will be appreciated that thecontract data information request may be more generally referred to asan information request.

Referring to FIG. 8, at 722 the method includes associatively linkingthe BIM metadata with ERP metadata included in a project contractincluded in the ERP sub-system at the ERP sub-system. However, in otherexamples the associative linking may be implemented in the BIMsub-system. In this way, metadata in both the BIM and ERP sub-systemsmay be mapped to provide a communication bridge between the systems toincrease the system's efficiency. It will be appreciated thatassociatively linking metadata in the two sub-systems may includeselecting a set of ERP metadata from a plurality of sets of ERPmetadata, the set of metadata including at least one metadata fieldincluded in the BIM metadata. Each set of ERP metadata may be associatedwith a different project contract. In this way, relevant projectcontracts may be identified for subsequent transfer to the BIMsub-system and display by the BIM sub-system. Thus, a contractor,architect, engineer, etc., may view contracts related to the structuralobject via the BIM sub-system without switching systems. As previouslydiscussed, the ERP metadata and the BIM metdata may include one or moreof material data, vendor data, project number data, project phase data,a subcontract number, project schedule data, and cost data. It will beappreciated that the metadata may be independent of the graphical datarendered via a rendering model in the BIM sub-system.

Next at 724 the method includes formatting a contract data set into aCOBie format. The COBie format may include a type of XML format. At 726the method includes sending the contract data set from the ERPsub-system to the BIM sub-system. In this way, contract data may beautomatically sent to the BIM sub-system, enabling a user of the BIMsub-system to not only interact with a project model but also accesspertinent contract information associated with the contract model storedin the ERP sub-system.

FIG. 9 shows a method 900 for managing a construction project in an inan electronic construction collaboration system. The method 900 may beimplemented via the electronic construction collaboration system,sub-systems, components, elements, etc., shown in FIG. 2 or may beimplemented via another suitable electronic construction collaborationsystem.

At 902 the method includes receiving BIM data from a BIM subsystem, thedata including a plurality of building structural objects, each with aplurality of associated meta-data fields.

Next at 904 the method includes receiving ERP data from an ERPsubsystem, the data including contract and financial fields. At 906 themethod includes establishing a plurality of links between the ERP dataand the BIM data, each of the links associated with a particularbuilding structural object, the links established based on acorresponding field, and once established, the links includes evennon-corresponding fields. In one example, the establishment of the linksis prioritized based on a number of corresponding fields between the ERPdata and the BIM data for the particular building structural object. Inthis way, pertinent data may be correspondingly linked. Further in oneexample, at least two corresponding fields are required to establish thelinks, the at least two fields including a project number and a vendornumber. Therefore, it may be determined if a link is established basedon the number of corresponding fields. Further in one example, theplurality of links are further established based on COBie-formatteddata.

Next at 908 the method includes displaying in a common view, linked datafrom each of the subsystems without transitioning between the twosub-systems. In one example, the displaying includes, first displayingin the common view the linked data associated only with a selectedstructural object, and in response to an addition user selection fromthe common view, displaying, in the common view, data for a structuralobject other than the selected structural object, but with fields incommon with the selected structural object. Further in such an example,the data for the structural object other than the selected structuralobject includes a common vendor or sub-contractor for the selectedstructural object and the structural object other than the selectedstructural object. Further in one example, the linked data displayed inthe common view includes one or more of an entity installing a selectedstructural object, materials for the selected structural object, a shapeof the selected structural object, dimensions of the selected structuralobject, a contract for construction of the selected structural object,cash flow related to the selected structural object, change orders forthe selected structural object, labor hours for the selected structuralobject, equipment hours for the selected structural object, approvalsfor the selected structural object, or combinations thereof. In thisway, users can easily view common data without undue searching and/orswitching between sub-systems. Further in one example, the linked datadisplayed in the common view includes time cards for the selectedstructural object.

At 910 the method includes updating both the BIM data and ERP data,using the established links, for a structural object specified in achange order in response to receiving data from the change order.

FIG. 10 illustrates a computing system 1000 configured to practice allor selected aspects of the operations described above and shown in FIG.6. It will be appreciated that the BIM and/or ERP subsystems shown inFIG. 2 may include one or more of the components shown in the computingsystem 1000. As illustrated, computing system 1000 may include processor1004, memory 1008, and bus 1012, coupled to each other as shown.Additionally, computing system 1000 may include storage 1016 and one ormore communication interfaces 1020, e.g., a network interface card(NIC), or an antenna, coupled to each other, and the earlier describedelements as shown.

Memory 1008 and storage 1016 may include, in particular, temporal andpersistent copies of project logic 1024, respectively. The project logic1024 may include instructions that when executed by the processor 1004result in the various techniques described herein being performed.

In various embodiments, the memory 1008 may include random access memory(RAM), dynamic RAM (“DRAM”), static RAM (“SRAM”), synchronous DRAM(“SDRAM”), dual data rate RAM (“DDRRAM”), etc. In various embodiments,the processor 1004 may include one or more single-core processors,multiple-core processors, controllers, application-specific integratedcircuits (“ASICs”), etc.

In various embodiments, storage 1016 may be a machine-accessible mediumthat includes integrated and/or peripheral storage devices, such as, butnot limited to, disks and associated drives (e.g., magnetic, optical),universal serial bus (“USB”) storage devices and associated ports, asolid state drive (“SSD”), flash memory, read-only memory (“ROM'),nonvolatile semiconductor devices, etc.

In various embodiments, storage 1016 may be a storage resourcephysically part of the computing system 1000 or it may be accessible by,but not necessarily a part of, the computing system 1000. For example,the storage 1016 may be accessed by the computing system 1000 over anetwork via the communication interface 1020. In various embodiments,computing system 1000 may have more or less components, and/or differentarchitectures.

Although certain embodiments have been illustrated and described hereinfor purposes of description, the application is intended to cover anyadaptations or variations of the embodiments discussed herein.Therefore, it is manifestly intended that embodiments described hereinbe limited only by the claims.

Where the disclosure recites “a” or “a first” element or the equivalentthereof, such disclosure includes one or more such elements, neitherrequiring nor excluding two or more such elements. Further, ordinalindicators (e.g., first, second or third) for identified elements areused to distinguish between the elements, and do not indicate or imply arequired or limited number of such elements, nor do they indicate aparticular position or order of such elements unless otherwisespecifically stated.

In the preceding detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings which form a part hereof wherein like numeralsdesignate like parts throughout, and in which is shown by way ofillustration embodiments that may be practiced. It is to be understoodthat other embodiments may be utilized and structural or logical changesmay be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.Therefore, the following detailed description is not to be taken in alimiting sense, and the scope of embodiments is defined by the appendedclaims and their equivalents.

In the description above various operations are described as multiplediscrete actions or operations in turn, in a manner that is most helpfulin understanding the claimed subject matter. However, the order ofdescription should not be construed as to imply that these operationsare necessarily order dependent. In particular, these operations may notbe performed in the order of presentation. Operations described may beperformed in a different order than the described embodiment. Variousadditional operations may be performed and/or described operations maybe omitted in additional embodiments.

For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrase “A and/or B”means (A), (B), or (A and B). For the purposes of the presentdisclosure, the phrase “A, B, and/or C” means (A), (B), (C), (A and B),(A and C), (B and C), or (A, B and C).

The description may use the phrases “in an embodiment,” or “inembodiments,” which may each refer to one or more of the same ordifferent embodiments. Furthermore, the terms “comprising,” “including,”“having,” and the like, as used with respect to embodiments of thepresent disclosure, are synonymous.

1. A method implemented by code stored in memory executable by aprocessor in a computing system, comprising: receiving buildinginformation modeling (BIM) data from a BIM sub-system, the BIM datarepresenting a construction project model including a plurality ofstructural objects with BIM data structures, the BIM data including BIMmetadata associated with the BIM data structures; receiving enterpriseresource planning (ERP) data from an ERP sub-system, the ERP dataincluding a contract and financial data set having ERP data structuresand ERP metadata associated with the ERP data structures; generating aplurality of links between the ERP data and the BIM data, each of theplurality of links associated with one of the plurality of structuralobjects and generated based on a correspondence between a portion of theBIM metadata and the ERP metadata, and once generated, the plurality oflinks map an association between non-corresponding BIM data and ERPdata; and displaying in a common view, the linked ERP data and BIM dataincluding the non-corresponding BIM and ERP data without transitioningbetween the BIM sub-system and the ERP sub-system.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, where generating the plurality of links between the ERP dataand the BIM data includes executing a parser to generate linked ERP andBIM data structures.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising,responsive to generating the plurality of links between the ERP data andthe BIM data, automatically triggering data transfer from the BIMsub-system to the ERP sub-system, the data transfer including locationdata and form data, the location data defining one more of a contour andsize of one or more of the plurality of structural objects, and thelocation data defining a location of one or more of the plurality ofstructural objects.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the generation ofeach of the plurality of links is prioritized based on a number ofcorresponding fields in the ERP data and the BIM data for a particularstructural object included in the plurality of structural objects. 5.The method of claim 1, where the non-corresponding BIM data and ERP datainclude one or more of material data, vendor data, project number data,project phase data, a subcontract number, project schedule data, andcost data.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying is triggeredin response to user selection of one of the plurality of structuralobjects.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the corresponding BIMmetadata and ERP metadata includes a similar vendor or sub-contractor.8. The method of claim 1, further comprising updating both the BIM dataand ERP data, using the plurality of generated links, based on and inresponse to receiving a change order associated with a structural objectincluded in the plurality of structural objects.
 9. The method of claim1, wherein the plurality of links are further generated based onConstruction Operations Building Information Exchange (COBie) formatteddata.
 10. An electronic construction collaboration system for managing aconstruction project comprising: an enterprise resource planning (ERP)sub-system including code stored in memory executable by a processor toimplement; a contract engine configured to generate at least one projectcontract including a contract data set with ERP metadata; and aninterconnection engine configured to generate a link between the ERPmetadata and building information modeling (BIM) metadata correspondingto a structural object of a construction project model in a BIMsub-system and send the contract data set to the BIM sub-system inresponse to generating the link between the ERP metadata and the BIMmetadata, the generated link mapping an association betweennon-corresponding BIM data in the BIM sub-system and ERP data in the ERPsub-system.
 11. The electronic construction collaboration system ofclaim 10, where the interconnection engine is further configured toformat the contract data set into a Construction Operations BuildingInformation Exchange (COBie) format prior to sending the contract dataset to the BIM sub-system.
 12. The electronic construction collaborationsystem of claim 10, where the non-corresponding BIM data and ERP datainclude one or more of material data, vendor data, project number data,project phase data, a subcontract number, project schedule data, andcost data.
 13. The electronic construction collaboration system of claim10, where generating the link between the ERP metadata and the BIMmetadata includes executing a parser to generate linked ERP and BIM datastructures.
 14. The electronic construction collaboration system ofclaim 10, where the ERP metadata includes a first data fieldcorresponding to a second data field in the BIM metadata.
 15. Theelectronic construction collaboration system of claim 14, where thefirst data field in the ERP metadata is mapped to a plurality of datafields in the BIM metadata.
 16. The electronic constructioncollaboration system of claim 14, where the first data field and thesecond data field are each included in separate data sets.
 17. Theelectronic construction collaboration system of claim 10, where thecontract data set includes contract documents, cost data, labor hourdata, and equipment hour data.
 18. A method for managing a constructionproject, the method implemented by code stored in memory executable by aprocessor in an electronic construction collaboration system, the methodcomprising: receiving a structural object selection input from abuilding information modeling (BIM) sub-system; selecting a structuralobject in a construction project model executed by the BIM sub-system inresponse to receiving the structural object selection input, thestructural object including BIM metadata; sending a contract datainformation request to an enterprise resource planning (ERP) sub-systemin the electronic construction collaboration system in response toselecting the structural object, the contract data information requestincluding the BIM metadata; receiving the contract data informationrequest from the ERP sub-system; generating a link between the BIMmetadata and ERP metadata included in a project contract in the ERPsub-system based on a correspondence between the BIM metadata in thecontract data information request and the ERP metadata; and sending acontract data set to the BIM sub-system in response to generating thelink between the BIM metadata and the ERP metadata, the contract dataset included in the project contract.
 19. The method of claim 18, wheregenerating the link between the BIM metadata and the ERP metadataincludes executing a parser to generate linked BIM and ERP datastructures.
 20. The method of claim 19, where the structural object isdefined parametrically with regard to other structural objects in theconstruction project model.